The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has asked the federal government to immediately clarify the contents of the health cooperation memorandum of understanding (MoU) recently signed between Nigeria and the United States, citing concerns over alleged conflicting framings.
In December, the US signed a five-year bilateral health MoU
with Nigeria to strengthen the country’s health system with a strong focus on
supporting Christian faith-based healthcare providers.
The agreement is expected to expand access to essential
preventive and curative services, including HIV, tuberculosis, malaria,
maternal and child health, and polio interventions.
Under the MoU, the US government intends to commit nearly
$2.1 billion over five years to health funding in Nigeria, while Nigeria will
increase its domestic health expenditures by nearly $3 billion during the same
period.
The US government had said the agreement remains subject to
its broader foreign policy priorities and that its president and secretary of
state retain the right to pause or terminate any programmes that do not align
with the national interest.
‘CONFLICTING FRAMINGS, CONSTITUTIONAL BREACH’
In a statement issued on Sunday, Bolaji Abdullahi, ADC
spokesperson, said the party is disturbed by “materially different” framings of
the agreement.
He said while the Nigerian government has portrayed the MoU
as an inclusive framework to strengthen health security and boost domestic
health financing, the official statements from the US introduced
“identity-based elements” that were absent from Nigeria’s account.
Abdullahi said the US description suggests that spending
under the MoU could be targeted at health institutions linked to a particular
religion, a framing that violates Nigeria’s constitutional provisions on
non-discrimination and national unity.
“The US characterisation introduces religious,
identity-based framing, indicating that spending under the MoU should be
targeted at health institutions backed by a particular religion only,” the
statement reads.
“It is the ADC’s considered view that the Nigerian
government should not enter into any agreement that is sectional or potentially
inimical to Nigeria’s constitutional commitment to inclusion and national
unity.
“We find it particularly curious that these troubling
conditionalities, including those that grant the United States unilateral
powers of termination, are conspicuously missing from the Federal Government’s
public rendering of the agreement. The ADC believes that this divergence is not
a mere communications issue.”
The ADC spokesperson argued that the divergence goes beyond
a communication gap and raises questions about transparency, constitutional
compliance, and national sovereignty.
Citing section ection 42(1) of the 1999 constitution,
Abdullahi said no citizen of Nigeria “shall be discriminated against on the
grounds of place of origin, sex, religion, or political opinion”.
He said sections 15 and 17 of the constitution equally
impose a duty on the state to promote national integration, eliminate
discrimination, and guarantee equality of rights and opportunities for all
citizens.
“Therefore, any international agreement, or public framing
of such an agreement, that appears to introduce identity-based distinctions
into the provision of public services raises serious constitutional and
national cohesion concerns,” he said.
“We are particularly at a loss as to why the Nigerian
Government would enter into such an agreement, especially considering that
Nigeria is reportedly committing more resources under the arrangement.”
Abdullahi called on the government to state clearly which
version of the agreement reflects the actual terms signed and why there are
significant differences between the two accounts.
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